The GamesIndustry.biz Microcast

For our final podcast of the year, the entire editorial team gathers around their microphones to discuss our favourite games of the year. The selection varies greatly from first-party franchise extensions and AA blockbusters to Switch ports of classic RPGs and innovative indie games. (And some members of the team may have shoehorned in namedrops for multiple other picks as well). Download now and listen to discover the games that made the biggest impact on our team this year, and be sure to keep your browsers pointed to GamesIndustry.biz all this week for full write-ups of our choices. As always, you can get your daily dose of news, analysis and insight into the world behind video games at www.gamesindustry.biz. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It’s time for the GamesIndustry.biz Podcast, and this week James, Brendan, and Rebakah are on hand to discuss all the big news while still leaving plenty of room to reminisce about the GameCube.  The industry is once again overflowing with complaints regarding toxic work environments, after former Razer employees accused CEO Min-Liang Tan of abusive behaviour.  These allegations were joined by two court rulings which saw Quantic Dream pay a former employee €7,000 over an offensive photoshopped image, while Riot Games shelled out $10 million to former employees in gender a discrimination settlement.  The Nintendo Switch is set to arrive in China tomorrow, around seven months after it was initially cleared for distribution by the Chinese government.  Analysts predicted Nintendo was in for a rough ride this year following some optimistic sales projections. But far from the Switch losing steam, Nintendo has enjoyed a bumper 2019 thanks to its burgeoning (if a little troubled) mobile strategy, Detective Pikachu, and continued success of the Switch.  Finally: Fewer, bigger, better -- the strategy many big game publishers talked about ten years ago, but where has the industry landed on this? Well, EA has gone from releasing 50 games in 2009 to just ten games this year.  Publishers are releasing fewer games, but most of those which had the chop likely wouldn’t stick out, as it’s predominantly licensed and shovelware games, which have become increasingly expensive to make on console, finding a new home on mobile. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The industry may grind to a halt during Thanksgiving week, but there’s still plenty going as we take a look at unconscious bias, diversity, and the perceived failings of virtual reality.   Following last week's articles by Rebekah (Brass Lion Entertainment and the critical business of diversity) and Haydn (Overcoming unconscious bias in the games industry), we discuss both the barriers and benefits of inclusion. From hiring and industry blind spots, to why diversity is important and how to better foster it in the industry.  Then Haydn bullies VR some more while everyone else discusses its limitations, failures, and potential after Xbox boss Phil Spencer said “nobody is asking for VR.” His sentiment was echoed by  Michal Nowakowski, CD Projekt's VP of business development, who said: "VR remains a... niche of the market -- like it's very, very small."  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this week’s bumper pack episode, Rebekah, Matt, and Haydn discuss the troubled Google Stadia launch, Half-Life: Alyx, and Pokémon.  Google made big promises with the Stadia, and now it’s here the response has been notably muted. Plagued by fidelity and performance issues, the Stadia is struggling to fulfill its potential. As it stands, Stadia is widely considered the best game streaming platform available, but is still a long way from being complete.  The long-awaited next entry to the critically-acclaimed Half-Life series was announced by Valve last week, but it’s not what fans were expecting. The VR exclusive title could be the “killer app” that virtual reality headset makers have been waiting for, or the high entry cost could just exclude many die-hard fans of the series.  Finally, Nintendo and Game Freak are sitting pretty on a mountain of cash following the release of Pokémon Sword and Pokémon Shield, despite community backlash over certain Pokémon which don’t appear in the game.  Petitions to Donald Trump and a Twitter frenzy weren’t enough to impact the game’s sales, which has already become the Nintendo Switch’s fastest-selling title. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A short but special episode in which James and Chris discuss the biggest announcements from Microsoft's event in London this week. Recorded on the show floor itself, this discussion actually took place a few hours ahead of the reveals, but thanks to handy pre-brief notes we were able to weigh up the highlights. Highlights included new IP from Rare and Obsidian, as well as a partnership and ambitious new protagonist from Dontnod Entertainment. We also talk about the updates from Xbox's streaming service, codenamed Project xCloud, and how this offering plays into Microsoft's wider strategy with Xbox Game Pass. As always, you can get your daily dose of news, analysis and insight into the world behind video games at www.gamesindustry.biz. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Rebekah, Chris, Matthew and Brendan gather round their mics to discuss the biggest news and topics of the games industry. This week, we start by considering the new appointments at Sony Interactive Entertainment and the insights from our recent interview with PlayStation boss Jim Ryan. Having previously discussed Sony's stategy to hold back from detailing the next generation, we now have a better understanding of what's happening behind the scenes. Of course, the industry still has questions -- such as the future relationship between indie studios and PlayStation -- and we discuss how these might play out in the year to come. Next, following Rob Fahey's column, we debate how Overwatch 2 may pave the way for a new type of sequel: one for a world dominated by games-as-a-service offerings where publishers will be reluctant to force the original's audience to upgrade. Finally, the news that Ubisoft is publishing its last Wii game -- likely the console's last game ever -- is as good an opportunity to pay homage to Nintendo's groundbreaking console and our favourite titles. As always, you can get your daily dose of news, insight and analysis into the world behind video games at www.gamesindustry.biz. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

James, Brendan and Rebekah discuss some of the biggest topics from the past week, starting with the controversy surrounding the latest Call of Duty. For months, Infinity Ward and Activision have promised a gritty, realistic take on today's global conflicts, and yet critics report these attempts lack substance and are undermined somewhat by a game that remains focused on delivering high-octane setpieces around a super soldier fantasy. Combine that with the controversy over its child soldier, waterboarding and history-altering Highway of Death sequences, and it's hard to know what Call of Duty really wants to be. We also reflect on the recents financials for major publishers such as EA and Ubisoft, and how the shift in the AAA space continues towards live service titles, perhaps at the cost of single-player narrative experiences. Finally, we cast our minds more than 30 years into the future and try to imagine what the recently trademarked PlayStation 10 might look like. As always, you can get your daily dose of news, insight and analysis into the world behind video games at www.gamesindustry.biz. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this brief podcast excursion Rebekah, Brendan, and Haydn unpick last week’s industry events, starting with the surprise delays from Naughty Dog and Ubisoft.  Just over a month after announcing a release date, Naughty Dog revealed it would be pushing The Last of Us II back by around three months. Then, just a few days later, Ubisoft announced it was delaying Watch Dogs Legion, Gods & Monsters, Rainbow Six Quarantine to sometime between July 2020 and December 2020.  Though the news hit Ubisoft hard, with its share price dropping 16% afterwards, the news opens up the debate about launch windows, and whether publishers are trying to find more space in the crowded market.  Over at Google Stadia, there’s lots of questions around whether Google knows what it’s doing on the development side of things. The tech giant is making big promises around what Stadia can do, and has announced major in-house development operations, but whether it will deliver or struggle at the first hurdle like Amazon remains to be seen. One thing that’s for sure though, is most of the GamesIndustry.biz editorial team aren’t terribly convinced.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We have a special episode for you this week, recorded live from the show floor of EGX 2019.  Matt, Chris and James took to the stage to answer a series of consumer questions with the aim of giving a little more insight into how the business of games works and the state of the industry today. Topic covered include the decline of games retail, expectations for Google Stadia and streaming services, the future of free-to-play, Nintendo's mobile strategy, the notion of platform holders releasing games on each other's consoles, and whether we'll ever see a Half-Life 3.  If you want to put face to voice, you can also check out the video version here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mRs5FMjZ1o4 As always, you can get your daily dose of news, insight and analysis into the world behind video games at www.gamesindustry.biz. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

James, Brendan, Rebekah and new starter Marie discuss the ongoing fallout of Blizzard's punishment for pro Hearthstone player Chung 'Blitzchung' Ng Wai. We discuss the severity of the original punishment, the apparent lack of process through which this was reached, and how widespread the backlash has become. We also touch on the implications for other publishers with direct ties to China and its companies, and consider the long-term impact for Blizzard, especially with Blizzcon around the corner. (After recording, Blizzard released a statement responding to the controversy and we address this in a short update towards the start of the episode.) Following this main topic, we look at Ubisoft's plans for various animated series based on its games -- going on a slight tangent about the difficulty in making a kids' TV show based on a mature and violent games brand. Plus, we come up with our ideal video-games-to-TV adaptations -- and fail to top Rebekah's suggestion. As always, you can get your daily dose of news, insight and analysis into the world behind video games at www.gamesindustry.biz. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices